1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates, generally, to apparatus and methods for attaching lanyards in interconnecting relation between preselected articles of manufacture. More particularly, it relates to apparatus and methods for interconnecting with a lanyard a handle and lever arm of the type used in rapid inflation equipment.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Life preservers and other flotation devices that require rapid inflation typically rely on the quick release of compressed carbon dioxide into the article to be inflated. In many devices, a user of the equipment pulls on a handle to effect the inflation. Typically, a lanyard interconnects the handle and a pivotally mounted lever arm so that the lever arm pivots when the handle is pulled. The pivoting of the lever arm drives a pin through a membrane in a carbon dioxide cartridge, thereby releasing said gas into the inflatable article.
Obviously, if the lanyard separates from either the handle or the lever arm when the handle is pulled, the lever arm will not pivot and the article will not be inflated. Thus, inventors have devised several methods of attachment to ensure that the opposite ends of the lanyard will remain connected to the handle and lever arm, respectively, when the former is pulled.
The most effective apparatus and method heretofore developed for securing a lanyard to a handle is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,099,546 to the present inventor, entitled "Lanyard-Gripping Handle," and the most effective method and apparatus for securing a lanyard to a lever arm is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,042,134 to the present inventor, entitled "Method For Securing A Lanyard To An Inflator Lever Arm." In the lanyard-to-handle method, a first end of the lanyard is positioned in sandwiched relation between two mold parts for making the handle, and said first end is forced to follow a serpentine path of travel by a plurality of plugs placed along the extent of the mold. Thus, when the molding process is completed and the plugs removed, the lanyard is molded between the lanyard halves in a serpentine configuration so that it can not be pulled therefrom. A similar process is followed at the lever arm end of the assembly.
That technique is very effective, but it is capital-intensive because the molds are large and expensive. What is needed, then, is a method that would be more labor-intensive so that the cost of molds and the size of the molding machine could be reduced. However, the prior art, when considered as a whole, neither taught nor suggested to those of ordinary skill in this art at the time the present invention was made, how the needed method could be provided.